


Like Me

by powerhouseofthe_cell



Category: The Good Doctor (TV 2017)
Genre: Autistic Lea, Canon Autistic Character, Canon Compliant, F/M, Gen, I tried to keep it ambiguous so you can decide if they are together or not, written before 1X11
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2019-03-08 00:29:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13446672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/powerhouseofthe_cell/pseuds/powerhouseofthe_cell
Summary: “You’re like me.” His voice was quiet compared to the volume of the TV, but Lea still jumped.“God Shaun, you’re going to give me a heart attack.” She placed a hand on her chest and laughed. “What are you talking about?”“You’re like me.” Shaun met her eyes before looking back down at the blanket.Or: A self-indulgent fic where Lea is autistic and didn't know





	Like Me

The digital clock in the kitchen flipped to Saturday, May 5th at 12:00 am. 

Shaun had a rare day off the next day, and had finally agreed to the TV binge Lea had proposed weeks ago. Both were currently sprawled on the living room floor, laying on their stomachs. The only light in the room was from the flat-screen, illuminating their faces with a blue glow.

Shaun had stopped caring about the episode six minutes ago, and had begun to watch Lea instead. She was twirling her hair around her finger, tangling the dark strands. Her eyes kept wandering from the TV to stare at the hardwood, then at the ceiling fan, then to the tag on the blanket the pair shared. When she was done with her hair, she began to chew on her fingernails, wearing away at the red polish. 

From what Shaun could tell, Lea didn’t seem too interested in the show either. Everything caught her attention except what was being spoken on the TV. She startled when a police siren rang through the apartment; her hands jumped up fast to her ears before returning to their position in her hair. But as Shaun watched Lea begin to mumble the words being spoken, it hit him.

“You’re like me.” His voice was quiet compared to the volume of the TV, but Lea still jumped. 

“God Shaun, you’re going to give me a heart attack.” She placed a hand on her chest and laughed. “What are you talking about?”

“You’re like me.” Shaun met her eyes before looking back down at the blanket.

“I heard you the first time, but I need you to clarify what you mean.” Lea paused the TV and sat up, pulling her legs up under her. Shaun mirrored her movements, angling himself so he was facing the girl opposite. He began picking at the blanket tag himself.

“You stim. You don’t like eye contact. You startle at loud noises and you echo words. You’re like me.” 

Lea let out a laugh that sounded just a little too unnatural, high-pitched and breathy. “No, Shaun. Normal people do those things all the time.”

“Are you saying I’m not normal?” Shaun’s eyes widened and he looked anywhere but her face. He rocked back and forth slightly.

“Shaun that’s not what I, god-” Lea ran her fingers through her bangs, shifting slightly. “No one is normal, Shaun. And you know what I meant. Everyone gets scared by sirens sometimes, and maybe I just really liked that monologue.”

“Maybe everyone does those things sometimes, but you don’t do them sometimes. You always play with the ring on your right hand and the keychain on your car keys. Whenever you’re stressed, you touch your hair or chew on your fingernails. You never make eye contact, even when it’s considered a social norm. You also get distracted and never finish tasks. You’re like me.” Shaun nodded twice, satisfied with his argument.

Lea got up and made her way to the kitchen, grabbing a wine glass from the cabinet. “Saying it over and over doesn’t make it true, Shaun.” She grabbed the bottle from the fridge and poured a generous serving, draining half the glass immediately. “I’m just a regular person.”

Shaun stood, swaying in place for a moment walking toward the kitchen. Lea turned away from him to look out the window, and he stopped halfway to her.

“Is this conversation making you uncomfortable?” He clasped his hands, unsure whether to move closer or take a step back. Lea finished her drink before leaning against the countertop.

“A little. Most people don’t really like their flaws being picked apart.” She sighed. “I’m just an average person. I’m not like you, Shaun Murphy.”

“Would it be so bad if you were?” Shaun took a few steps further to stand in the entryway of the kitchen. Lea placed her glass in the sink before reaching forward and taking Shaun’s hand.

“Come on, I’ll tell you a secret.” She led him to the sofa before practically throwing herself on the cushion. Shaun sat next to her, one hand still holding Lea’s. She ran her thumb over the back of his once before letting go.

“When I was in like the second or third grade, this teacher, Ms. Greene, said the same thing you just said. She told my parents that I was different and there was something wrong. My parents, they wanted to do everything right, so they took me to this therapist. I can’t remember her name, but she promised my parents that I wouldn’t have any more troubles in school.” She looked at Shaun’s face for a moment before continuing. “We only had a few sessions, but she taught me how to make eye contact and stop fidgeting. Whenever I moved my hands, she would hold them down for the rest of the session. At the end of each session, I had to maintain eye contact for a few minutes before I could leave. My teacher called my parents and said I was making ‘great improvements in the classroom’,” Lea scrunched up her face a bit before continuing, “and so my parents stopped making me see the therapist. And that was kinda it, we never brought it up again.” She shrugged a bit, her posture hunched over her lap.

“You were in ABA therapy.” Shaun began fidgeting in his seat, moving his fingers along the seams of the loveseat.

“What does that mean?”

“Applied Behavior Analysis. It’s a type of therapy that aims to fix neurodivergent children. It is widely used across the United States. Your parents put you in ABA therapy to try and fix you, but it didn’t work. You still display neuroatypical traits.”

Lea’s eyes widened. “What are you trying to say?”

“I’m saying you’re like me. You’ve always been like me, but you were forced as a child to hide your traits. Your parents put you in ABA therapy because they didn’t want a child like me.” Shaun sat up a bit straighter as Lea relaxed into the couch. 

“Are you saying that I’m autistic? Because I’m pretty sure I don’t have autism, Shaun.” Lea shook her head emphatically, as if willing everything away.

“Autism presents differently in women. Many professionals say it is more mild, but women are actually just better at hiding symptoms and adapting to their environments. There are also other kinds of neurodivergence besides autism, like ADHD. Many girls who have ADHD are described as flighty or promiscuous, when really they have a different neurotype.” 

“Are you calling me promiscuous?” Lea swatted at Shaun’s arm lightly and laughed under her breath.

“No, but I heard Armen say it once. He said you were too promiscuous for his taste.” Shaun and Lea both scrunched up their noses at the same time.

“Eww gross. Armen can go to hell.” Lea giggled before sighing softly and tapping Shaun’s foot with her own. “So what if I am, how did you put it? Neurodivergent? What if I am that?” She tucked her ankle under Shaun’s, so his sock’s elastic just barely scratched at her bare skin. He flinched slightly but didn’t pull away.

“What do you mean? Nothing further needs to be done. There are support groups online, if you want that. Dr. Glassman always tried to sign me up for those sites, but I don’t want to. But if you want to, that’s your choice.”

“I think it’s going to take me a while to get used to this. I mean, I’ve lived my whole life thinking that I was just like everyone else.” She shuffled closer. “I don’t think I want to tell anyone about this conversation. Not right now. Let me think about it.” She brushed her bangs out of her face again and puffed her cheeks out.

“That’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it.” 

Lea nodded once, then once more. “Okay, yeah. Do you watch to finish watching this episode?”

“No.” Shaun wasn’t interested in the show, and really didn’t want to sit through another episode.

Lea laughed again, but this time it was genuine. “Yeah, me neither.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic I've written in 6 years but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out! I'm not sure I got the characterization right, so leave a comment with feedback! I also tried not to make this fic too "I'm educating you" so sorry if it seemed that way!
> 
> Sidenote: I am autistic, and a girl, so this was written primarily from my experience as an autistic woman. It certainly doesn't reflect the experiences of every woman with autism. 
> 
> You can follow me on tumblr @powerhouseofthe-cell!


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